For many women and girls, the inauguration of Kamala Harris was a moment of triumph. Harris is not only the first woman elected vice president, she also breaks ground as the first Black woman and the first person of South Asian descent to hold the position. Minnesota women celebrated the moment.
Raj Chaudhary moved to the United States from India in 1967 — three years after Harris was born in California. Harris’ late mother was from India; her father is from Jamaica.
Chaudhary founded the Minneapolis nonprofit Asian Indian Family Wellness. Work at the office paused Wednesday so staff could watch the inauguration.
Seeing Harris raise her right hand on the Capitol steps affirmed for Chaudhary the American ideal that gender and ethnicity should never be barriers to success.
“I raised my children that way, that anything can be done if you work hard and you have the heart and the will to do it. Absolutely in America anyone can be anything.”
Geetanjali Mittal, who develops women’s programs at the nonprofit, also is an immigrant from India. Mittal said it’s great to see someone of South Asian descent in a position of power, but it’s even more important to have a woman there.
“I’m a big fan of Maya Angelou, and she has a beautiful quote, that each time a woman stands up for herself, without knowing it’s possible, without claiming it, she stands up for all women. And here is Kamala Harris who is standing up for all of us. She’s not saying it, but we can feel it,” Mittal said.
The inauguration was just as momentous for members of Alpha Kappa Alpha, the nation’s oldest Black sorority. Harris joined as a Howard University student in 1986.
Mary Dedeaux-Swinton, president of the Twin Cities graduate chapter, wanted to go to Washington, D.C., to see the inauguration in person. She joined her sorority sisters for a virtual watch party instead.
“It was fun to see other people’s reactions on the screen and a couple of times when I was like ‘I can’t believe this is happening,’ I looked at the screen, and everybody was looking the same way. So it was nice.”
After all the excitement, Dedeaux-Swinton said she reminded the others watching with her that electing Joe Biden and Kamala Harris is just the beginning.
“We have to remain engaged, and we have to hold both of them accountable to the things that they said they were going to do, and we’re going to have to work to make sure that they do for our communities what we feel like they need to be doing,” Dedeaux-Swinton said.
Dedeaux-Swinton points out that Harris’ success is the direct result of two major societal shifts in the last century: the 19th Amendment granting women’s suffrage and the Voting Rights Act of 1965.
Anjuli Cameron — whose parents are from India — said their journey was possible because of a major change to U.S. immigration law that same year. Cameron notes that the civil rights movement benefited both Black and Asian Americans, and Harris’ family story embodies that.
“Because of her own unique experiences growing up as a Black woman and as a South Asian woman, I think she’s able to really articulate how those two experiences are connected.”
After a divisive election, Cameron says Harris’ swearing-in Wednesday was a moment that transcended politics, but also a reminder that many Americans are only a generation or two removed from racial and ethnic persecution.